Numerous manufacturers of men's accessories and shaving accessories offer disposable and reusable razors with blades made of quality materials. But sooner or later, any blade will begin to lose its properties, especially if you do not provide the machine with decent care, proper operation and storage. In this regard, experts offer many techniques for sharpening machine blades, many of which can be used at home.
Many men know how to sharpen a razor at home, since several ancient methods have been practiced for many years. Today, many new ideas have been invented that also sharpen blades quickly and easily, extending their service life. It is only important to follow all the details and instructions, otherwise you may damage the sharp cutting surface.
Sharpening a razor at home: what is important to know
Many men believe that sharpening blades for a machine is an unlikely or completely useless task. Especially considering the fact that there is a huge assortment of new blades and cassettes on sale in stores. In fact, high-quality razors cost a lot of money, as do blades for such models. Therefore, experts recommend saving money and sharpening blades, unless, of course, you use a cheap disposable razor.
Have you ever sharpened your razor?
Not really
Only a few types of razors can be sharpened using this method:
- disposable machine;
- reusable razors with cassettes;
- T-shaped machines.
If, in addition to proper use and care, the blades are sharpened, a man will be able to provide himself with high-quality wet shaving and save money on the purchase of a machine or blades. Otherwise, the blades will not only cut hairs poorly and pull them out, but also scrape off the top layer of skin. An important condition for sharpening is to follow the instructions for all stages, otherwise you can dull the cutting surface even more.
For reference! If a man does not have the skills and knowledge of how to sharpen razor blades, you can contact a specialist who has in his arsenal a machine for sharpening razor blades and other devices for professional sharpening.
How to sharpen a disposable razor at home with your own hands
Typically, disposable razors are not intended for long-term use, but throwing them away after the first shave is an unaffordable luxury . If you carefully care for the blade and avoid damaging it, the product will last for months without any problems and will help you out in an unforeseen situation.
Basic rules for maintaining and sharpening a razor:
- After shaving, you must thoroughly clean the body of hair and detergent residues. It is best to use warm (not hot) water.
- The machine must be stored in an upright position, avoiding direct sunlight and high humidity. If you need to take the razor with you on the road, the razor must be absolutely clean and dry.
It is most convenient to sharpen a disposable machine using denim or the back of a belt. As a rule, workshops do not sharpen such products, and sandpaper or a stone can damage the metal, which is usually not of the highest quality in such products.
Step by step guide
Today, the most pressing request from men in forums and communities is as follows - how to sharpen the blades of a Vest razor. This manufacturer offers high-quality machines with replaceable cassettes, which you can easily extend the shelf life yourself, without the help of a specialist. Most often, two devices are used for this action - a pyramid razor blade sharpener or ordinary denim.
You can make a pyramid yourself from a material that is incapable of magnetization, for example, plexiglass or cardboard. It is secured with glue or tape; it is prohibited to use metal fasteners. Further sharpening is carried out as follows:
- mark the pyramid on a hard, straight surface;
- then the pyramid is oriented to the cardinal points;
- the razor blades should be placed along the pyramid in the north-south direction;
- the blades should lie in this state under the pyramid for 6-8 hours.
The same method can be used to sharpen blades for cassette razors such as Gillette and other brands.
Many men have been successfully practicing the technique for many years, noting its ease of use and high efficiency. Using a special device from RazorPit or Zattoch, blades on a cassette or removable blades are sharpened as follows:
- Apply a little shaving gel to the surface of the device;
- further along the abrasive surface, but in the opposite direction, as during shaving, movements are made with the machine;
- make 25-30 such movements at a time;
- At the end, the machine and working fixture will need to be rinsed with water.
Just 5-10 minutes of such manipulations will be enough to revive the blades of the machine and give the razor a second life. This will not only save money, but also provide a man with high-quality and effective shaving of stubble and mustache without irritation and other consequences.
How to sharpen electric razor blades?
Using a special sharpening device
Demand always creates supply, so not long ago special devices for sharpening blades at home appeared on the market. The device is a handle equipped with a small strip of plastic, on the surface of which a special abrasive is applied. It allows you to sharpen disposable and reusable razors with equal efficiency, extending their service life several times.
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Blade sharpener RazorPit
A prominent representative of such devices is the RazorPit device from a Danish company, although it also has a cheaper analogue, Zattoch, made in Ukraine. The devices are easy to use and give good results. The sequence of actions includes the following steps:
- You need to apply a little cosmetic product – gel or foam – to the surface of the device.
- Use the cutting part of the razor to move along the abrasive in the direction opposite to how the razor moves during the shaving process.
- Depending on how long you use the machine, 25-30 movements are enough to get the blades sharp again.
The procedure is simple and effective, but you need to understand that the razor sharpening device itself also costs money. It may be cheaper to update replacement cassettes on the machine.
Handy tools to help
If a device such as a razor sharpener is not suitable for a man, you can use improvised means, for example, denim. This is one of the first methods that was invented by men many years ago. It is enough to simply turn the fabric inside out, and then run the loom with the blades inside against the direction of the fabric threads 30-40 times, but without pressing.
Another handy method is a leather belt, and sharpening the blades follows the same scenario as with denim. You need to choose a belt that does not have frayed areas or creases, otherwise the surface of the blades will be damaged. You need to move the blades along the belt from its wrong side. This will maintain the integrity of the painted side of the belt while improving the functionality of the machine.
How to sharpen a razor with improvised means
The razor has been a personal hygiene item for several centuries. The first special hair removal device, the straight razor, had to be sharpened before each use. Moreover, its blade was aimed at the belt directly during shaving.
Modern technologies have made it possible to create safe shaving machines. Many of them, such as "Vest" or "Chic", can be used repeatedly. But even branded cassettes gradually become unusable and require replacement. Each blade of the cassette is made of high-strength steel, but it still becomes dull over time and develops burrs, which leads to a painful shave and skin irritation.
Good cassettes for reusable machines (for example, “Vest - 3”) are quite expensive, and sometimes (for example, on a business trip or on vacation) there is simply no time or nowhere to buy them. It turns out that you can easily extend the “life” of a cassette. All you need is jeans and a little patience. If the denim item will serve further, then sharpening should be done on the wrong side. For these purposes, thick ribbed denim is best suited.
The sharpening procedure is as follows:
- Turn your jeans inside out to avoid ruining the item.
- Spread them on a flat surface.
- Place a foil roll, a flat narrow block, a narrow ruler or another flat object under the fabric, the width of which is less than the length of the cutting part in the cassette. This is a necessary condition, since there are protrusions along the edges of the cassette that will not allow you to sharpen the blade on a flat surface. The spacer must be placed under the fabric so that the fabric ribs run diagonally.
- Place the cassette blade on the block and move it along the fabric in the direction opposite to that in which the machine moves during shaving. And so we grind the blade 50 times, moving it only in one direction.
- We unfold the razor and similarly grind the cassette on the jeans, now moving it in the other direction.
After this procedure, you will be able to shave comfortably again. By periodically sharpening cassettes, you can significantly extend their service life. In this way, you can sharpen both disposable razors and branded razors, such as “Vest”.
Instead of denim, you can use a strip of leather of the required width, cut from an old belt or an unnecessary leather item. You should sharpen on the reverse – unpainted side of the leather. Sharpening occurs somewhat faster than on fabric. 20-30 passes in one direction will be enough. There is no need to sharpen in the opposite direction, as with jeans.
Read also: Stretch bars with lanyards for deflectors
Is it important to use special devices?
In fact, any selected razor sharpener should be approved by experts, like a leather belt, pyramid or denim. Other unfamiliar techniques and untested means at hand can easily damage the integrity of the blades, since we are talking about a metal plate with a thickness of 0.5 mm or less. Although there are many razor sharpeners sold online, only a few actually do the job.
Expert opinion
Alexey Strizhnikov
Barber, expert on men's haircuts
“Practice has shown that the Vest razor blade can be used three times longer with the help of such special devices.”
If we are talking about an expensive machine and blades, it is better to purchase sharpening options such as a device from the RazorPit brand or its Ukrainian equivalent from the Zattoch brand. In such a device you can sharpen both blades and cassettes of a safety razor without fear for their integrity and functionality. If a man prefers the cheap option of sharpening on jeans, you need to correctly observe the direction of the blades perpendicular to the direction of the threads in the fabric.
